Character Mugshots

While I was avoiding getting work done the other day, I started playing with some of my research photos.  Whenever I write, I find I have a much easier time describing a city or a building or a river if I have a photo to use as a point of inspiration.  Now, when it comes to my characters I have a very specific picture in my head for each and always have.  I found several actors a couple years ago who are pretty darn close to the pictures in my head.  They aren't perfect, but they share foundational features and especially fit the overall feel.

Daughter of Ron Howard and stupendous actress, Bryce Dallas Howard looks like Faela before she had her nose broken.  Faela has more of a pronounced break.  Her coloring, her hair, her costuming, even her expression is spot on in this picture.  Just imagine the silver eyes.
Faela Durante (Bryce Dallas Howard in "As You Like It")
I remember the first time I saw BBC's "Being Human," I knew immediately that the drool worthy Irish actor, Aidan Turner, IS my Kade.  I mean c'mon, LOOK at that picture.  The montage picture below though is the one that just rendered me speechless because of how much he looks like my image of Kade.
Kade Hawthorn (Aidan Turner in "Being Human")
Jared Padalecki just reminds me of Jair so much, especially a Jared who's skinnier than he is these days on "Supernatural."  He's the right mix of gigantic lanky and adorable puppy.  When I saw this picture of Jurnee Smollett (from CBS's "The Defenders"), I knew she was my Mireya.  Her beauty, her sweetness, and especially her hair are on the money in this picture.
Clockwise: Faela, Kade, Jair, and Mireya.
I altered the photos in the montage to mimic how their eyes would appear using specific color magic.  It is far from ideal, but I really liked how Kade and Faela's turned out and decided to SHARE.  What I would love is to find someone who's pro at using Photoshop to create a smoky effect to mimic the colors of magic flowing from their eyes.  I know exactly how it looks in my head, but lack the skills to translate it to a visual medium.

I have other pictures of other characters, but these are the ones that are, as they say, picture perfect.  What do you think, my loverly readers? Do these actors line up with your mental pictures or did you imagine these four COMPLETELY differently?

Comments

Anonymous said…
Just finished Shatter this morning. I must say the photos you've posted match up fairly well for how I saw the characters. Especially Kade.

Now, when's the next part of the story coming out and will it be on Kindle?
Yeah, Aidan Turner is pretty much exactly how I imagine Kade. :D "Render" has a tentative release for this summer. And it will definitely be available on Kindle. I'm a big fan of e-readers and Kindle especially has treated me very well.
Villagepig said…
I think you have captured them very well, all except for Faela who, for some reason I pictured as more of a sun freckles & curly red hair kinda gal??

btw, the new season of Being Human starts in the UK next week :-)

And have you had a chance to watch Misfits? Highly recommend it for all sorts of weird (and somewhat shocking) inspiration.
Villagepig said…
oooo also wanted to add that on your recommendation I read Paranormalcy and I adored it. It gave me all the tingles that being a teenager once did.

Kindle suggested another one called, 'The Blood that Bonds' (http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Blood-That-Bonds/dp/B002R5B0WI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295545010&sr=8-1) and so far it is a very intriguing vampire read.

I mean, they're no Shatter, but they're bridging the gap until Render finally comes out!
Sharon said…
I finished "Shatter" today and loved every minute of it. I am looking forward to the next installment. You are a very talented writer. I'm also thrilled that the books will be available on Kindle.
Taryn said…
So I'm pretty sure this isn't the place to post this, but I couldn't find an email for you anywhere. My name's Taryn, and I'm a freshman at Asbury where one of my closest friends is (you guessed it) Kelsey Huck.

It took her until yesterday to mention she had an amazing author teacher, at which point I immediately had to look you up. I guess this is just a little introduction since I feel weird following you on twitter (ASwimmerWrites) without you knowing why.
@Villagepig: Thank you so much for the kind words! I'm just a bit flabbergasted that people are reading my book! I'm so glad you enjoyed "Paranormalcy"! I think Kiersten White is just tons of fun as a writer. I obsessively stalk her blog. :) I haven't heard of "Misfits." I'll have to jot that one down to look into.

@Sharon: Thank you so much! I'm a big ol' technophile and bibliophile, so e-readers are basically my version of hard narcotics. :)

@Taryn: It's nice to meet you! Tell Kelsey I say hello. I miss that girl. My twitter feed is public, so you didn't need to explain, but I appreciate the introduction. If you have an e-reader or smartphone, you can get my debut novel, "Shatter (The Children of Man, #1)" for free through pretty much an e-reader platform (Kindle, Nook, Sony, Kobo, ect). Otherwise, it is available in paperback form on amazon or B&N and various other online retailers (just not Borders in the US).

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